AMP WinOFF 2.2
--------------
 1999-2000 Alberto Martinez Perez
E-mail: amp@ampsoft.freeservers.com
WWW: http://ampsoft.freeservers.com



Contents
--------

1. Description
2. Legal stuff
3. Installation
4. Usage tips
5. Command line support
6. Known problems and limitations
7. Credits



1. Description
--------------

AMP WinOFF is a utility to shut down Windows systems automatically, with several
working ways. Some of its features are:

- Shut down the system at certain hour (e.g. at 12:00).
- Shut down the system in several minutes (e.g. in 15 minutes).
- Several types of shut down (shut down, restart, ...).
- Shows a message for 15 seconds in order to allow the user to cancel the
  shutdown.
- Option of start with windows, for daily programmed shut down.
- Complete command line support for batch process.
- Works with Windows 9x/NT/2000.
- Dual English/Spanish version.

See Changes.txt for changes history.

If you have any suggestion, you find a bug, etc., send me an e-mail.



2. Legal stuff
--------------

This program is freeware, but only for private use (not commercial). For
commercial use or inclusion in distributions that you gets paid (CD's, ...)
contact with the author for authorization. You can redistribute it for free,
whenever you use the original package. It you don't have a original package,
you can find it at http://ampsoft.freeservers.com.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY
WARRANTY. The author declines responsibility for any possible damage due to the
use of this program.



3. Installation
---------------

Simply copy the program's files to the directory where you want to store
then, and make a shortcut to the executable file.



4. Usage tips
-------------

- Due to the differences among Windows 95, 98 and NT/2000, the same option may
  work different in each version. This is a description of how it works:

  1. Shut down option will close the system in Windows 95, power off the
     computer in Windows 98 and close the system in Windows NT/2000
  2. Close session option will close the current session in all supported
     versions of Windows.
  3. Restart option will restart the computer in all supported versions of
     Windows.
  4. Power off option will close the session in Windows 95/98 and power off the
     computer in Windows NT/2000 (See the section 5 for details about this).

  Note: In order to power off option works, you need the appropriate hardware.
        If you don't have it, the system will be closed instead.

- The Force shut down option assure that the system will be shut down, no matter
  what programs would be actived. In the other hand, you may lose any unsaved
  data of these programs, so use this option carefully.

- If you uncheck the Date option and check the Start with Windows option,
  the program will shut down the system every day at the same time.



5. Command line support
-----------------------
- AMP WinOFF supports several parameters to allow run it directly from the
  command line, for a batch shut down. In this mode, the program performs
  an immediate shut down without showing the cancel dialog. The suported
  parameters are:

  - "-batch": Rhe program close the system using the options previously
    saved with the configuration dialog.
  - "-shutdown": The program shut down the system.
  - "-logoff": The program closes the session.
  - "-reboot'": The program reboot the system.
  - "-poweroff": The program power off the system.

  In adition to these parameters, you can also use these other ones:
  - "-force": The system is forced to perform the selected close mode.
  - "-noforce": The system is closed with the selected close mode without
    force it.

  For example, if you wish to do an immediate reboot with force you can type
  in the command line:

   WinOFF -reboot -force



6. Known problems and limitations
---------------------------------

- The Power off option not work with always on Windows NT/2000. Some people
  report me that the this option works well in their systems, but others tell
  me that this option restart the computer instead of power off it. This is a
  issue of the version of Windows NT and the APM configuration of Windows 2000,
  and not of this program.


- In Windows NT/2000, the user need to have the proper rights in order to close
  the system.


7. Credits
----------

 1999-2000 Alberto Martinez Perez
E-mail: amp@ampsoft.freeservers.com

Thanks to Javier Caneiro for his support.
Thanks to Fiton Huang, Mark Decent and Juan Andrs Botero R. for their
suggestions.
